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Lot Essay

Elegantly embellished with carved ornament, brass inlay and an original marble top, this pier table illustrates the fine cabinetry of New York craftsmen during the Classical era. Bearing the estampille of Charles Honoré Lannuier (1779-1819), the table was previously thought to be the work of the French émigré cabinetmaker. However, as the form is not consistent with Lannuier's known work and the stamp appears to be double-struck, it is probable that this stamp was applied at a later date and does not indicate Lannuier's authorship. As discussed by Peter Kenny, tables such as this example with rounded corners, which appear after Lannuier's death on tables made by Duncan Phyfe (1770-1854) in 1820 and later, are not part of Lannuier's documented oeuvre. Nevertheless, the maker of this table was probably influenced by the French cabinetmaker's work. Lannuier is credited with the introduction of brass inlay on New York furniture during the early nineteenth century and the rope-carved rings below the waterleaf-carved baluster turnings are related to those on a Pembroke table bearing his label (Peter M. Kenny, Frances F. Bretter and Ulrich Leben, Honoré Lannuier: Cabinetmaker from Paris (New York, 1998), pp. 76, 154, 224, cat. 121, pl. 32).

This table is further distinguished by its ownership in the family of Rufus King (1755-1827), a Major in the American Revolutionary War and a leading political figure in the early republic. Two pieces made by Lannuier share the same provenance and one of these, a labelled stand now in the collections of the White House, is visually similar to this table with its marble inset top and waterleaf-carved baluster turnings. It is possible that King or a family member commissioned the table offered here to appear en suite with the stand (Kenny, Bretter and Leben, pp. 153, 203, 223, pl. 68, cats. 46, 118; Christie's, New York, The Ronald S. Kane Collection, 22 January 1994, lot 395).